A Pawn's Passage

Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu arrived at Jinguan Prefecture on the second day of November and stayed there for one night. They then continued their journey, heading to Baidi City on the third day of November.

After that, they would take a boat from Baidi City down the river to Huzhou, also known as Jingzhou in ancient times. From Huzhou, they would make their way to Wuzhou, finally arriving at Shangqing County, where the Zhang family had lived for generations. That was also where the Dazhen Mansion on Yunjin Mountain was located.

The two of them left the city gate of Jinguan Prefecture, wearing their mended cloaks and walking leisurely along the main road.

“Qing Xiao, have you met the Emperor?” Qi Xuansu asked out of the blue.

During their journey, they would make small talk. They chatted about all kinds of topics to kill time. It also helped them understand each other more.

Zhang Yuelu shook her head. “Nope.”

Qi Xuansu said, “I wonder what this Emperor is like.”

Zhang Yuelu thought about it for a while before she replied, “This is the 41st year of the Jiushi Era, which means His Majesty has been the Emperor for 41 years. I remember that he ascended the throne in his twenties, so he should be an old man in his sixties by now. But His Majesty should have practiced Daoist anti-aging methods, so he wouldn’t look too old. He would have maintained a middle-aged look to command authority over the Imperial Court.”

Qi Xuansu sighed. “He must be highly respectable since he has been the Emperor for 41 years.”

Zhang Yuelu stated, “The former Wei Dynasty adhered to Confucianism, but the Great Xuan Dynasty followed Daoism. All emperors in the Great Xuan Dynasty were Daoist disciples. Before Emperor Gaozu started the rebellion, he and the Great Sages from the Li and Zhang families were the three Deputy Grand Masters. The position of Grand Master was vacant.”

“You mean, the Great Sword Immortal Li Daoxu and the Old Heavenly Preceptor Zhang Jingxiu in the Holy Xuan Cards?” Qi Xuansu asked.

Zhang Yuelu nodded. “Yes. At that time, the Holy Xuan was still below these three people and was ranked fourth in the Daoist Order. Later, when the Great Sword Immortal and the Old Heavenly Preceptor ascended to Heaven, Emperor Gaozu decided to rebel against the Wei Dynasty. Thus, the Emperor no longer served as the Deputy Grand Master, and the Holy Xuan became the Grand Master of the Daoist Order.

“The Great Xuan Dynasty then proclaimed Daoism as the empire’s main religion, worshiping the Primordial Daoist Ancestor. Starting from Emperor Gaozu, all emperors accepted the Daoist title. In other words, the Emperor has two identities. His second identity is as the Great Sage Ziji of the Daoist Order.

“The Emperor has a status above the Deputy Grand Masters and equal to the Grand Master. However, the Emperor cannot intervene in the Daoist Order’s affairs, so the Grand Master still holds absolute power in the Daoist community.

“When Daoist disciples meet the Emperor, we usually address him as Your Majesty. But on formal occasions, we have to address the Emperor by his Daoist title. The current emperor’s Daoist title is the Great Sage Ziji. The late emperor’s title was the Great Sage Yuandu, and Emperor Gaozu’s title was the Great Sage Changsheng. It’s usually enough to remember these three titles since people at our levels generally don’t get to see the Emperor.”

Qi Xuansu nodded and made a mental note of it. “I didn’t know that the Emperor has a Daoist identity. Is he considered a Daoist disciple then?”

“This honorary title was given by our ancestors. Since emperors of all dynasties regarded themselves as the disciples of Heaven, there is no conflict between these two identities,” Zhang Yuelu explained.

“In fact, the same is true for the Golden Horde, which proclaimed Shamanism as their main religion. They believe in the Immortal Heaven. The Witch King is favored by the Immortal Heaven, while the Golden Horde Khan is the one who relies on the power of the Immortal Heaven to become the king on Earth. The two are interdependent. The Witch King can live forever but cannot occupy the throne, while the Khan will die eventually.”

This was the first time Qi Xuansu heard such stories. In the past, he was frequently traveling, far from the Ancestral Court or Daoist temples, so he had no chance to hear such stories.

Zhang Yuelu asked, “Why do you suddenly care about the Emperor?”

Qi Xuansu actually came up with this topic out of boredom, but he did not say so. “I was just curious. I used to hear people say that the two most powerful people in the world were the Grand Master of the Daoist Order and the Emperor of the Imperial Court. Now that the position of Grand Master is vacant, doesn’t it mean that the Emperor is the most powerful person in the world?”

“Pretty much.” Zhang Yuelu said, “But that doesn’t affect us in the Daoist community since the Emperor can’t intervene in the Daoist Order.”

Qi Xuansu had heard of this as well. The Daoist Order and the Imperial Court decided to keep to their own lanes and not intervene in each other’s affairs.

......

Bohai Prefecture was located at the mouth of the Sanhui River, known as the gateway to the Imperial Capital. The east side of Bohai Prefecture was a hub for water transportation as it had many piers, including civilian ports for merchant ships and military ports for warships. One would have to pass through this place when using the waterway into the Imperial Capital.

A huge vessel docked in the military port, dwarfing the other ships and boats nearby. This majestic ship had metal armor and did not have complicated sails. There was only an observation tower and a huge chimney.

It was the metal warship that traveled across the seas and was as impressive as the Daoist flying ships. In addition, the warship was also equipped with the latest artillery.

Two hundred years ago, warships in the East and West were commonly equipped with breech-loading cannons. Although they were greatly improved compared to front-loading cannons, these cannons still used trunnion technology.

The cannon’s barrel was connected to the carriage by trunnions, and the carriage absorbed the recoil force when the cannon was fired. As a result, the entire cannon carriage recoiled when fired, causing significant displacement. Resetting and aiming the cannon after firing required a considerable amount of time, resulting in a lagging rate of fire. It even set the slowest record for firing rate, at only twice an hour.

To address this deficiency, the Western Continent developed recoil tubes. A recoil mechanism on cannons was installed, allowing the rear part of the cannon to automatically return to its original position using its own recoil force after firing. This saved the need for resetting and re-aiming, hence significantly improving the firing rate. This technology later spread to the Eastern Continent and was widely adopted by the three major naval fleets of the Imperial Court.

A group of people appeared at the bow of the ship. The leader was wearing a black hechang cloak and a lotus crown. He was the owner of the warship, Sage Qingwei, who was in charge of the Qizhou Daoist Mansion.

As for why Sage Qingwei, a member of the Daoist Order, could own an armored warship, this could be traced back to the Wei Dynasty.

During the Wei Dynasty, the isolation of maritime trade led to the neglect of the Imperial Navy. At the time, the Confucian School was the largest landowner in the world. The Daoist Order then used another approach and vigorously developed its fleet to fill the gaps. Their fleet could reach the Western Continent, ultimately surpassing the self-isolated and stagnant Confucian School due to the flourishing maritime trade.

The vast sea was like an unclaimed territory, so the pirates ran rampant. The Daoist Order’s fleet was equipped with artillery, making it a formidable force as it was capable of combat. Among them, the Li family’s fleet was the most powerful. After three naval battles, the Li family’s fleet established itself as the dominant force at sea.

During the war, the Li family’s fleet was divided into two groups. One headed north to bombard the Bohai Prefecture, while the other headed south to block the transportation of goods on the Yangtze River, achieving great success.

After the Great Xuan Dynasty unified the empire, it established the three major naval divisions, which were formed from the Daoist fleets. The Li family’s fleet was one of the main forces, led by Donghuang, who was less than 30 years old at the time. He became the first Commander-in-Chief of the Donghai Navy.

Thus, the Li family had an inextricable connection with the Imperial Court and still had a profound influence in the navy. Every Commander-in-Chief of the Donghai Navy was from or connected to the Li family.

Sage Qingwei was not only an Omniscient Sage of the Daoist Order but also a member of the Li family. He did not usually live in the Qizhou Daoist Mansion. Instead, he resided in Qingling Palace on Fangzhang Island, which was next to Penglai Island, where the Zhenjing Courtyard was located. He was the second-in-command of the Taiping Sect and the Li family.

This time, Sage Qingwei went to the Imperial Capital on the Emperor’s order using the warship in a show of power.

There were rankings to the Omniscient Sages in charge of the local Daoist Mansions government. Some Daoist Mansion Masters were only there to maintain the balance of all parties, while others were authoritative.

The current three Deputy Grand Masters and the other Virtuous Great Sages were all over 80 years old, so they could not compete for the position of Grand Master. Thus, they would have to elect the Grand Master from the 36 Omniscient Sages. The Taiping Sect’s Sage Qingwei, who was backed by the Li family, was undoubtedly one of the most promising candidates.

Sage Qingwei’s true age was not known to outsiders. But judging from his appearance alone, he was very young, about thirty years old. He had a slim physique and was good-looking.

This Omniscient Sage, who had hopes of becoming the seventh-generation Grand Master, looked down from the warship and saw the crowd of people preparing to greet him.

The Imperial Capital and the surrounding district were the only places that did not have a local Daoist mansion. Thus, the people who came to greet Sage Qingwei this time were all court officials and disciples from the Taiping Temple, which included many descendants of the Li family.

Sage Qingwei withdrew his gaze and looked toward the Imperial Capital. He was from the main branch of the Li family, a direct descendant of the Great Sword Immortal, the Holy Xuan, and Donghuang. The Li family had produced two Grand Masters, four Deputy Grand Masters, and 28 Omniscient Sages.

Although the Li family was not among the three major families in the world, it was undoubtedly the number one family in the Daoist community. To the Li family, an Omniscient Sage was nothing since they currently had a Deputy Grand Master. What the Li family needed was a Grand Master to revive the glory of the Holy Xuan.

Thus, Sage Qingwei’s visit to the Imperial Capital had another purpose. Although the Emperor could not interfere in Daoist affairs, the Emperor’s attitude as the Great Sage Ziji was an invisible force that could sway the final decision in the election for the next Grand Master.